The LUMI robotic is designed to automate photo voltaic panel set up with out altering workflows. Supply: Luminous Robotics
Whereas federal funding for photo voltaic initiatives could also be unsure within the U.S., curiosity in robotics to assist building is rising worldwide. Luminous Robotics Inc. right now mentioned it has been chosen as the primary mission to obtain funding from the Australian authorities’s $100 million Photo voltaic Scaleup Problem.
“We’ve been engaged on this for the previous 10 months,” mentioned Jay M. WongCEO of Luminous. “We’ve arrange an entity and a warehouse over there and might do meeting and testing. We’ve additionally onboarded a basic supervisor who’s speaking to native machine retailers and hiring deployment technicians and engineers.”
Based in 2023, Luminous has developed LUMI, a robotic that may decide up photo voltaic panels and place them for securing onto racks. The Boston-based startup has acquired $4.8 million from the Australian Renewable Power Company (ARENA).
Luminous instantly addresses trade challenges
LUMI makes use of synthetic intelligence and will help current workforces to put in 80 lb. (36.2 kg) photo voltaic panels as much as 3.5 instances quicker, with none heavy lifting or workflow modifications, mentioned Luminous. This can be a activity that usually takes as much as 5 folks, typically in excessive winds or sizzling climate.
“We did market analysis for the primary six months after incorporation in August 2023,” recalled Wong. “Individuals have been making an attempt to automate photo voltaic set up for a decade, however there was no mass adoption but. Some corporations could also be higher capitalized than others, however quite a bit has to do with focus. Photo voltaic folks have been making an attempt to construct robotics corporations, and robotics folks have been making an attempt to construct photo voltaic corporations.”
“We now have a deep appreciation for the ache that the trade is making an attempt to unravel,” he informed The Robotic Report. “We don’t actually care what the robotic is. We’re not a expertise firm; we’re an organization that solves issues.”
Wong mentioned he wrote all of the code for LUMI v1, which went from an idea to a robotic within the discipline in 10 weeks. Luminous first examined its photovoltaic (PV) panel installer at a website in Virginia serving 1,300 clients.
The startup quickly moved from wheels to a tracked iteration with a bigger battery. Luminous sources robotic arms and a chassis from companions and does all its meeting and testing in-house at a warehouse in Boston.
“We’ve constructed essentially the most versatile answer within the trade for photo voltaic building,” asserted Wong. “No different robotic can decide up photo voltaic panels from entrance or again, which is a vital enabler for inserting it into any building course of. The trade revolves round danger mitigation — retaining construct initiatives on schedule with out introducing a single supply of large danger. We’re not altering the way you decide panels off pallets or vehicles.”
“We’re now on Model 4, which is in restricted manufacturing,” he mentioned. “We’ve made it nimbler and are working to make issues extra modular, designing for manufacturing at scale. We’re beginning to ship out LUMI throughout the U.S. and Australia.”
LUMI augments human employees in photo voltaic PV set up. Supply: Luminous Robotics
LUMI to assist arrange Australian photo voltaic farms
Luminous mentioned LUMI can improve productiveness and security on Australian photo voltaic farms. Whereas the system has already demonstrated value reductions on photo voltaic farms within the U.S., the corporate mentioned the ARENA mission marks its first world deployment of a full fleet of 5 cell manipulators, which might cut back photo voltaic farm prices by as much as 6.2% over their lifetime.
Luminous has partnered with Equansa world engineering, procurement, and building agency, to deploy LUMI at two Australian photo voltaic farms — the 440MW Neoen Culcairn Photo voltaic Farm in New South Wales and the 250MW Engie Goorambat East Photo voltaic Farm in Victoria.
“Equans reached out to us final yr and introduced us in contact with ARENA,” mentioned Wong. “We had to make certain it could be worthwhile to ship the product and have the assist infrastructure. Whereas there was a steep studying curve round rules and different issues, the Photo voltaic Scaleup Problem was an effective way to get into the Australian market. We’re flying on the market this weekend.”
LUMI will even acquire website and set up knowledge to additional refine its design and optimize efficiency for important value reductions in photo voltaic panel set up.
“Deploying our LUMI fleet in Australia will enable us to seize the info, efficiency insights, and real-world impression wanted to drive world adoption—the sort of scale and transformation we based Luminous to attain,” mentioned Wong.
ARENA invests in Luminous for low-cost energy
The LUMI mission continues ARENA’s assist of Australian innovation within the photo voltaic PV trade. ARENA packages have offered greater than $290 million to round 300 photo voltaic analysis and growth initiatives since 2012.
“ARENA has set an bold objective to scale back the put in value of photo voltaic to 30 cents per watt and produce the levelised value of electrical energy (LCOE) under $20 per megawatt hour,” said Daren Miller, CEO of ARENA. “These are essential targets, as a result of at this value photo voltaic will kind the muse for Australia’s renewable vitality ‘superpower’ future.”
“To realize internet zero, Australia will want immense quantities of solar energy at ultra-low value,” he added. “We’ve already confirmed our capability to fabricate superior applied sciences. It’s now time to use that functionality to photo voltaic PV, a cornerstone of the nation’s clear vitality future.”
“Collaboration with corporations like Luminous is essential to decreasing prices and sustaining Australia’s main position within the growth and innovation of photo voltaic applied sciences,” he added. “We’re aiming to carry collectively leaders throughout Australia and the world to sort out the challenges introduced in our quest for even cheaper renewable vitality by this essential expertise.”
LUMI can safely and effectively decide up photo voltaic panels from pallets for placement on racks. Supply: Luminous Robotics
Massachusetts supplies local weather for innovation
Luminous is a member of MassRobotics and was lately named a finalist within the 2025 Eddie awardswhich acknowledge innovators in Massachusetts.
“We’ve had a number of assist from the native ecosystem and the state, together with from the Massachusetts Clear Power Heart,” mentioned Wong. “I discovered from Southie Autonomy to be cost-efficient. We’ve been onboarding two to a few folks almost each week, and we’ve got about 12 FTEs (full-time equivalents) and 5 contractors.”
How is Luminous navigating modifications in U.S. funding for renewable vitality?
“The TAM (complete addressable market) for ‘tremendous human’ guide work is huge, at $15 trillion, and out of doors the capability of rapid human scope,” mentioned Wong. “The federal funds will have an effect on tax credit for building, which is able to hit residential markets hardest. It’s driving a frenzy to begin building instantly, significantly on the utility facet.”
“However photo voltaic continues to be the bottom value of vitality by any supply, and as AI knowledge facilities demand rapid era for energy-intensive infrastructures, photo voltaic continues to be the quickest to arrange,” he famous. “I’m nonetheless bullish on the trade within the U.S., and much more so globally.”
